


A Real Work of Art

by lululawrence



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, American AU, Friends to Lovers, High School, Kinda, M/M, Makeover, Neighbors, Nerd Harry, Popular Louis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2017-12-06
Packaged: 2019-02-11 10:02:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12932922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lululawrence/pseuds/lululawrence
Summary: “I don’t understand,” Liam said for probably the fiftieth time in ten minutes. “You have to explain again how this is a bad thing.”“Leeeeyummm,” Harry whined into the phone as he leaned his head onto his desk. “I felt like this year was my year for getting his attention, you know? That senior year I would finally get Logan Thompson to realize I exist! But he’s in almost every single one of my classes, Li. How am I supposed to survive that?”“Easily,” Liam answered, with the same matter of fact tone his voice always took when Harry was in one of his fits. “He doesn’t know you exist, so it shouldn’t be a problem. Right?”Or the one where Harry calls on an old friend, the super popular Louis Tomlinson, to help him change his look to capture the heart of Logan. Things only mostly go as planned.





	A Real Work of Art

**Author's Note:**

  * For [phdmama](https://archiveofourown.org/users/phdmama/gifts), [2tiedships2](https://archiveofourown.org/users/2tiedships2/gifts), [Justafoolintherain](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justafoolintherain/gifts).



> Hiiiiii!!! This started as a totally self indulgent thing and ended up as a gift for three of my lovelies: [Ka](http://timecantjustdisappear.tumblr.com), [Mel](http://2tiedships2.tumblr.com), and [L](http://phd-mama.tumblr.com). For your very belated, only somewhat belated, and a tad bit early birthdays, I hope you enjoy this little piece of fluffy silly boys. I enjoyed writing this and it kind of took a life of it's own so I hope it makes all three of you incredible women smile! I love you very much a lot!!
> 
> This fic was also written as part of an ongoing challenge. We each select random numbers and are given a specific emotion from the book 1000 Feelings For Which There Are No Names. To read the other fics written in this challenge, [click here](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/ShortFic_Challenge_For_Which_There_Is_No_Name/works), or you can find the masterpost on tumblr [here](http://lululawrence.tumblr.com/post/159679804243/1000-feelings-for-which-there-are-no-names-prompt).
> 
> My prompt was 210: The Hellish Ordeal of your child’s first day of school.
> 
> Massive thanks to all five million people who helped me, for Niall inspiring me to write this during his concert in Silver Spring with a song that had nothing to do with any of this, and to [Molly](http://becomeawendybird.tumblr.com) for betaing the fic. All remaining mistakes are my own!
> 
> The title comes from On The Loose. Cause that's what I was listening to when I had the inspiration. I know. Weird. Sorry. Please don't share this with anyone affiliated with the boys, it is a work of fiction, blah blah blah I hope you enjoy!

Harry looked in the mirror and pouted. His hair had slowly been getting more and more curly and his gel couldn’t really hold it in place anymore. That, of course, left it looking like rather crunchy twigs that were randomly protruding from his otherwise nicely combed hair. He ran his hand down the front of his shirt that he’d ironed the night before and took stock of his brand new jeans. Well, even if his senior year was going to be about as exciting as the rest of his high school experience, at least he felt like he looked as good as could be expected.

Harry grabbed his bookbag and was slowly making his way down the stairs to ensure he didn’t slip (like he was prone to do) when he heard his mom’s voice coming down the hall from the kitchen.

“Jay, I don’t know how you survive the first day of school with so many kids. It’s just Harry at home these days, and even with it just being him, the first day of school still has my stomach in knots.”

Harry bit his lip. He knew he shouldn’t be eavesdropping, but he was curious what more she’d say. She was always so unfiltered around Jay, and Harry rarely got her honest thoughts, so he decided a little longer wouldn’t hurt.

For as long as Harry could remember, he had lived next to the Tomlinsons, and Jay had been his mom’s best friend the entire time as well. She had been like a second mom to Harry while he and Louis had been inseparable, but that was before he and Louis began running with very different social circles. Slowly, they’d just stopped hanging out. It wasn’t like they had a fight or a big falling out, they just didn’t have much in common anymore. That didn’t stop the two moms from having their weekly “Mom Dates”, though.

“God, I know. I always worry he’ll forget about something, or that he might be getting bullied and I don’t know about it. Or what if he’s completely miserable and he’s afraid to say anything? What if he didn’t make the right choices for his classes and he hates them? There’s always something popping into my head as to how it could all go wrong. Of course those fears are mostly gone by the second week of school, but it doesn’t mean they aren’t there for the first day every single year.”

Harry rolled his eyes and decided it wasn’t worth hiding out to hear this conversation. They weren’t talking about anything exciting at the moment anyway, so he finished his slow descent to the first floor and dropped his bag by the door.

“Harry? Is that you?” Anne called out.

Harry finished sliding into the kitchen on his brand new white socks and saluted. “Yep, it’s me.”

“Jay, I’m gonna go. Gotta make sure we get him to school on time and you know they’ve been talking about that change in the light signal, so I’m a little concerned how that will affect the rhythm of the drop off this year. Yeah. Okay, good luck!” 

Harry smiled a little as his mom made kissing sounds into the phone. She only ever did that for her family and Jay, but for some reason it made him smile every time she did.

“Okay. Cereal okay for this morning? I was going to do eggs, but then Jay called.”

“It’s like seven in the morning, why is she calling you this early?” Harry asked as he pulled out the Corn Pops. He barely texted his friends at this hour, much less thought of calling them, but his mom was more of a morning person than he was. 

“Oh come on. It doesn’t matter what time it is if you know they’re awake. She’s up with her kids and she knew I’d be up with you.” Anne sipped her coffee. “Okay. Let’s get this last first day of hell over, yeah?”

Harry’s eyes nearly bugged out. “Mom!”

Anne just laughed. “What? I know you aren’t looking forward to today any more than I am, so let’s not lie to ourselves, hm?”

Harry shook his head and laughed a little, still startled at the mood his mom was in. She seemed so much more relaxed than usual. Maybe she should have morning talks with Jay every day.

They both ate quick breakfasts before Anne took Harry to school and, thanks to their rushing about, he got there in plenty of time to stop by his locker before heading to first period. Everything was shaping up to be just fine in his German 4 class, until  _ he _ came walking in.

Logan. Thompson.

Harry had been harboring a bit of a crush on Logan for a few years, but he’d never had the opportunity to have a class with him. Up until now, Harry had just watched him across the cafeteria or at the school basketball game. The latter was only during those lucky times that he was able to convince Gemma or one of his friends to join him. None of them were very sporty so it was a tough sell, but occasionally he succeeded. 

Basically, it meant that Harry was actually a little worried about how he would be able to breathe while in such close vicinity to Logan.

Luckily, Frau Russo was going to be their teacher this year. If they’d gotten Frau Chapman, Harry might have been forced to sit  _ right beside _ Logan due to her penchant for seating everyone alphabetically. Frau Russo didn’t have nearly the same affinity for seating arrangements, so Harry could stay as far away from Logan as he needed until he was used to being in his presence and could function normally again.

Harry looked down at his desk so he wouldn’t get caught staring and realized he hadn’t gotten his notebook out or anything. Thankful for something to do, he busied himself with that until Frau started class. The first day was the same as usual, reading of the syllabus and a quick review of what they’d learned in German 3 the previous year, but Harry was easily distracted by the gorgeous boy sitting in the front row.

Logan was just so  _ beautiful. _ He was a little taller than Harry with gorgeous hair that was a nice mix of brown and blonde which worked perfectly with his gray eyes. Everything came together to create this picture that was Harry’s perfect man. And he was sitting right there, a mere seven feet from Harry. Of course Harry couldn’t concentrate.

Somehow, Harry made it through the rest of the period without doing something embarrassing like drooling on his desk or whining out loud when Logan bent over and his shirt rode up to show his pale, smooth back. Once the bell ran, Harry jumped from his seat and practically ran to calculus. He needed to get away from Logan as soon as possible so he could unscramble his brain.

 

*~~***~~*

 

“I don’t understand,” Liam said for probably the fiftieth time in ten minutes. “You have to explain again how this is a bad thing.”

“Leeeeyummm,” Harry whined into the phone as he leaned his head onto his desk. He’d been working on finishing his music theory homework when Liam had called, and Harry was regretting answering now. Liam was an incredible best friend, but sometimes he just really didn’t understand Harry. “I felt like this year was my year for getting his attention, you know? That senior year I would finally get Logan Thompson to realize I exist! But he’s in almost every single one of my classes, Li. How am I supposed to survive that?”

“Easily,” Liam answered, with the same matter of fact tone his voice always took when Harry was in one of his fits. “He doesn’t know you exist, so it shouldn’t be a problem. Right?”

“But he could easily realize I  _ do _ exist, thanks to all these shared classes, and I need to make sure he doesn’t figure out who I am before I’m ready!”

Harry could hear Liam’s rap music in the background as Liam tried to figure out how to respond.

“Okay, I’m going to ignore a lot of that and ask another question. When are you going to be ready? What do you need to do before you feel like you’d be okay with him noticing you?”

Harry pursed his lips. He hadn’t thought that far. “I dunno. I need someone who can, like, teach me how to be cool. Give me a cool guy makeover or something, you know?”

“A cool guy makeover?” Liam asked, obviously skeptical. “Who do you know that would possibly be able to give you one of those? None of us are cool, Harry.”

Harry laughed. Liam was right, none of them would be considered cool or had a decent sense of fashion. There had to be someone he knew and trusted enough that he could ask though.

Suddenly, Harry could hear an old Death Cab for Cutie album coming through his open bedroom window. Harry hadn’t listened to that one since probably middle school, but it was a good choice. 

As Harry turned to look out his window, he saw Louis stripping out of the polo shirt he’d worn to school and start singing along to the music, and it was then that Harry realized he knew exactly who he could ask. Hell, one of the most popular guys at school was his next door neighbor and former best friend. Louis could definitely give him tips on how to be cool. Plus, Louis was already out, so he might have good tips for Harry on how to pick up guys as well. 

“I’ll ask Louis. I’m sure he’d do it,” Harry said emphatically into the phone. The more he thought about it, the more perfect it sounded. There was no way Harry could fail to get Logan’s attention with Louis helping him.

“Louis? As in Louis Tomlinson?” Liam asked. “Isn’t he just like, a smaller, even more beautiful version of Logan? If you can’t handle being close to Logan how could you deal with that?”

Of course he was confused. Liam had moved into town sophomore year, so he didn’t know that Harry and Louis had once been the Dream Team. Harry would have to fill him in on that later, but for now, the basics would suffice. 

Harry pinched his lip between his fingers and then realized what else Liam had said. “Wait! Louis is  _ not _ a more beautiful version of Logan! They are completely different people! But yeah, we used to be really close. He was my best friend when we were younger, and we just kinda grew apart. I’m sure if I asked him for help, he’d do it.”

“Alright, alright,” Liam agreed, sounding like he didn’t believe Harry. That was fine, Harry was more than willing to prove Liam wrong. “Well, you go do that. Honestly, the sooner you can get that makeover the better. You’re in a classroom with him for like four hours every day.”

“I know, I’m gonna try and talk to Louis now. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

They both hung up and Harry went skipping across the room to his window. Louis was still having a bit of a party just dancing and singing to his music in his room, so Harry wasn’t sure he’d hear if Harry yelled for him. Harry turned around and found his nerf gun, sitting ignored in the corner of his room. 

Harry loaded one of the suction foam darts into the gun and aimed it at Louis’ window. He set up the elastic and then shot it, but of course right as he pulled the trigger a burst of wind came by and sent the dart falling below.

Okay, fine. Take two.

He went through the same set up and then shot the next dart, and it landed on the window perfectly...right as Louis’ back was facing the window. It apparently didn’t make enough sound to get his attention, either, because he kept right on going singing along to “Summer Skin” like nothing had happened.

Harry had one dart left, so he had to be sure this one worked or he would actually have to walk next door and brave all of Louis’ siblings in order to talk with him. Harry didn’t mind all the girls that much, but they were often loud and a little hyper right after school.

Harry waited until Louis got a little closer to the window and then aimed and hoped the wind wouldn’t ruin his shot. The dart sailed in through the open window and hit Louis right in the bum, causing him to jump in surprise. He whipped around and looked through the window before laughing. He went to his computer and turned off the music before walking towards Harry.

“Harry? What’s up?” Louis called as he leaned out the window and grabbed the second wayward dart off. “Didn’t I give this to you for your birthday when we were like twelve?”

Harry looked down at it and then widened his eyes in remembrance. “Oh my God, you’re right! We had a matching set, though for some reason we never thought of using them for this purpose.”

“Probably because we were already together all the time,” Louis said with an easy smile. “So what’s up?”

Harry bit his lip. He wasn’t ashamed to ask for the help, but he also didn’t really want to be yelling it between their houses.

“Do you mind coming over? I have a favor to ask.”

Louis smiled, but Harry could see the curiosity in his eyes. They hadn’t talked much at all over the last four years, so Harry suddenly asking him for a favor was a more than a little unexpected.

“Sure thing. I’ll be right there.”

“The door’s open,” Harry called back and Louis gave him a thumbs up to let him know he heard.

Harry went and put his nerf gun back in the corner it had been resting before. He’d just stood up and turned around when Louis came walking in, just like he used to all those years ago. 

“Hey, H. Wow, your room really hasn’t changed at all.” Louis looked around and Harry flushed a little. He liked the way his room was, he’d never found a reason to redecorate, even if it wasn’t thought as cool to have Lord of the Rings posters anymore.

“Yeah,” Harry said with a shrug, trying his best to not bite his finger. Louis knew him well enough to recognize that he was nervous about something if he did that, and for some reason he didn’t want Louis to know he was nervous. “It works for me.”

Louis turned around and looked at Harry. “Yeah, it does. So what’s up?”

Louis threw himself onto Harry’s bed and Harry sat back down in his desk chair, turning it so he could look at Louis.

“I need your help with something.”

Louis’ smile grew some more. “That’s what you said before, Harold. Now I’m even more curious what you need, since you’re kind of avoiding getting to the point.”

Harry’s entire body relaxed as he heard Louis use his old nickname. For some reason, that was all Harry needed to know it really would be okay for him to put himself forward like this.

“I kind of need, like, a makeover.”

At that, Louis sat up and looked over Harry. “Why? You look great, just like you always do. Who said you need to change yourself?” His voice sounded almost defensive, like he was angry at the thought that someone would dare to make Harry feel like he needed to change.

“No one,” Harry said, a little confused over why Louis was reacting this way. “I want to do it for me. Well, kind of for me.” Harry took a deep breath before finally spitting out, “I really want to ask this guy out, but he doesn’t know I exist and before I make myself known to him, I really kind of want to feel better about how I look and I thought you could help me just, like, be more cool?”

Louis’ eyes almost turned a brighter blue, and Harry knew that wasn’t a good sign. That usually meant he was ready for a fight and wasn’t afraid to be sassy.

“Harry. Why don’t you feel good about yourself?” 

Harry was about to argue with him, but Louis held up his hand, and when he spoke again, he sounded a lot like his mother when she was getting authoritative. Jay had a very distinct way of speaking that made people listen to her, and Louis had been honing that ability apparently. 

“No, I mean you used to dress like this because you  _ liked _ how you looked and felt when you dressed like this. If you don’t anymore, then of course I’ll help you find a way to dress that feels more like who you are and a better way to express that physically, but if you’re just changing because you want to look more like what you think this guy might like, then don’t. Don’t do it. It isn’t worth it, man, and neither is he.”

Harry smiled at Louis. “It’s mostly for me. I’ve not really felt comfortable with how I dress for a while now, but it’s all I really know. I don’t know how to do it any differently.”

Louis smiled. “Okay then. And, by the way, thanks for coming out to me. I’m glad you still trust me with that kind of thing.”

Harry smirked. “I figured you knew already anyway. The way we used to talk about Orlando Bloom and Viggo Mortensen definitely should have given it away, if you think about it.”

“Yeah,” Louis said with a shrug, “but you never know. So, when do you want to get started?”

 

*~~***~~*

 

Harry closed his locker and turned to head toward the German room when he stopped to avoid running into Louis. Harry gasped and pressed his hand to his chest in an attempt to still his racing heart, but it wasn’t working very well. 

“Oh my God, Louis!” Harry cried before smacking Louis on the shoulder. “You know better than to sneak up on me like that!”

Louis cackled loudly, bringing attention from everyone in the hall. It made Harry want to shrink away. People usually ignored him, and he was okay with that. He wasn’t ready for their attention just yet. Not when he was still...well...whoever he currently was. Harry would be ready for them to notice he was alive when he’d undergone his makeover.

“Oh come on. I wasn’t even trying. You know I’d do better than that if I was.”

Harry rolled his eyes. “Okay, yes. True. You always did have a flare for the dramatic.”

Louis struck a pose in the middle of the hall before he turned so he could walk with Harry. “So, we’re still on for tonight?”

“Yes, Louis. Nothing has changed since yesterday afternoon,” Harry said sarcastically, which earned him a bump in the shoulder.

“Don’t sass me, young man!” Louis cried, drawing even more eyes. 

Harry had forgotten what it was like to be friends with him. Louis always was the center of attention, so if Harry was planning to have their friendship be rekindled and not just for the makeover, he would have to remember how to deal with that again. 

“Young man? You’re not even two months older than me, Lou.”

Louis wrapped his arm around Harry’s shoulder and pulled him in close so he could pinch his cheek with his other hand. 

“Oh, you little whippersnapper!” Louis made his voice sound frail as he hung on Harry even more than before. 

Harry was laughing and trying to pull away, but Louis was too strong. 

“You’re always so quick to remember our exact ages. Just wait until you’re as old as me. Age has no bearing when you’re an aged man, like myself!”

“Oh my God, please stop. I need to get to class, okay? And so do you, actually.” Harry finally was able to duck out of Louis’ grip and patted his hair to make sure the gel was still holding his curls in place. He didn’t want to have them randomly puff out without his knowledge. He kept a bottle of gel in his locker for emergencies like these. “I’ll see you tonight, though. Five, right?”

Louis nodded. “Yeah. It’s a short practice today, just reviewing some films and then weight training, so five should be fine. I’ll come to you, so you aren’t waiting with my sisters to keep you entertained.” Louis grimaced and laughed. “Lottie is already half in love with you, I can only imagine what she’d be like if she got to spend time with you.”

Harry smirked. “Guess she would be disappointed to find out I don’t actually like girls then.”

Louis shrugged. “Not sure it would worry her much, actually.” Louis turned backwards and kept walking down the hall. “I’ll see you tonight, H!”

Harry waved and then walked into his classroom. When he sat down in the back corner, a girl he’d never spoken to before sat down beside him. He thought her name was Corinne, but he could be mistaken.

“Harry! You know Louis Tomlinson? How do you know Louis Tomlinson?”

Harry widened his eyes and focused on getting his notebook and textbook ready for lecture. He schooled his expression before turning to her with a polite smile in place. 

“We’ve been friends since we were little. We’re next door neighbors.”

She tilted her head and her hair fell over her shoulder, showing off her new red tips. The ombre was actually pretty cool with her hair tone, but it didn’t make Harry like her any better for only deeming him worthy of speaking to once he’d been seen with Louis in the halls.

“How come I’ve never seen you together? Well, not just me. Like,  _ nobody _ has  _ ever _ seen you two together. So why now?”

Harry furrowed his brows. “Does it matter? We have different friend groups and don’t hang out anymore really, but we’re still friends.”

Corinne humphed to herself and then got up to go back to her seat by her friends. “Whatever. Sounds fishy to me.”

Harry would have been more put out by her behavior, if Logan hadn’t walked in at that moment. He was just so beautiful. All long limbs perfectly toned and a smile that dental clinics probably begged for the opportunity to use in their ads. Harry wouldn’t blame them. Logan’s teeth were white and perfectly framed by lips that Harry could only dream of meeting with his own.

Harry did his best to hide his sigh as the bell rang and Frau Russo started class. First period in progress, only seven more to go.

 

*~~***~~*

 

“I can’t believe you weren’t fucking joking,” Niall said as he sat down at the lunch table, slamming his tray down beside Harry’s. 

“Niall, you really need to watch your language,” Liam warned, setting his bagged lunch down more carefully. “One of these times, Mr. Miller is going to catch you cussing as he’s pacing the cafeteria.”

“Whatever,” he said before biting an apple. “But for real, Harry. How did we not know about you and Louis being friends?”

Harry shook his head. “I know he’s, like, the coolest guy in school, but I didn’t realize that one conversation in the hallway would be such a big deal for everyone.”

Liam arched his brow, which was impressive considering they’d spent weeks working with him to be able to move just one at a time this summer. He’d finally figured it out and not lost it, which was good for him. Next maybe they could work on winking.

“Of course it is. It’s Louis Tomlinson,” Liam said matter of factly.

“What about me?” Louis asked from behind Harry. 

Harry jumped a little, but he wasn’t the one most surprised. As Louis sat down on Harry’s other side, Niall’s mouth hung open, chewed apple bits on full display, and Liam accidentally knocked over his chocolate milk. 

“Shit, Liam! It’s getting all over my papers!” Niall cried before jumping up to grab his notes from the table.

“Language,” Liam said automatically, still so stunned he hadn’t been able to take his eyes off Louis.

Louis smiled at their motley crew and turned to Harry. “What about me?”

Harry shrugged and popped a fry in his mouth. After he swallowed he said, “Apparently it’s a big deal that you’re talking to me.”

Louis scrunched up his nose in an attempt to hold back his smile before he gave up and just let it break out across his face. Harry loved that smile. It was the backdrop to many of his best memories from growing up.

“Why?” Louis asked as he waved at someone behind Harry. “If they think this is a big deal then you’ve obviously neglected to tell them about the Dream Team.”

“Oh, he did mention the Dream Team last night, actually,” Liam said as he finally started helping Niall mop up the mess his chocolate milk had created. “Didn’t have time to explain it, though.”

“Hey, guys.” 

Harry looked over and saw Steve, Bebe, and Zayn all sitting down at their table, taking the last seats available. Harry of course knew all of them, but they were part of the popular crowd while Harry hung mostly with fellow nerds and orchestra geeks.

“Hi?” Niall said in confusion, looking to Harry for help navigating the new social situation. “Do they realize the table they’re sitting at?”

Louis laughed. “We’re not stupid, Niall. Is it okay if we sit with you?”

Harry smiled at Louis. He always had been great at including people. Harry just hadn’t been ready to be included back in seventh grade, so he hung back while Louis ran faster with the new crowd. Now, though, he thought he was ready. That’s why he wanted the makeover, right? He was ready to make a name for himself and go after Logan, the potential love of his life.

“I mean, sure,” Niall responded, still looking confused as to what was going on. “I’m not gonna say no to anyone. Just wanted to be sure you weren’t lost or anything.” 

“Definitely not lost, brother,” Steve said with a smile. “Weren’t you the one who came up with the sick arrangement the marching band used for “Free Fallin’” this year?”

Niall sat up a little straighter and blinked. Harry could see him blushing a little at someone actually being familiar with his work and Niall not being the one to have told them. 

“Yeah, I was. I’m surprised you even know about that.”

“Steve’s big into music production and does some DJ gigs on weekends,” Louis said quietly to Harry. “Zayn’s been interested in talking to Liam about possibly getting him involved in the spring musical this year too.”

Harry smiled and swallowed his pizza so he could speak clearly. “Seems like we were meant to all hang out together, then, huh?”

Louis just wagged his eyebrows and then turned his attention back to the rest of the table. As Harry watched their two groups of friends meld together and get past the initial awkwardness, he couldn’t help but think that maybe this was the way senior year was meant to be.

 

*~~***~~*

 

“Okay, so is there a particular look you’re going for or just…” Louis paused, his head tilting to observed Harry’s current outfit as they sat at the red light, “not sweater vests and pleated khakis?”

Harry laughed a little. “I don’t know that I have anything specific in mind. I don’t want to go too preppy, just kinda clothes that actually speak to me but that still look put together and age appropriate.”

Louis smiled and patted Harry’s hair gently before shifting into first as the light turned green. “And what about that mop of curls I know you’re hiding away in there? Are you going to let me help you with those? And what about the glasses? I thought you only needed those for reading.”

Harry pulled the glasses off and tucked them away in Louis’ glove compartment. “First step, yeah?”

Louis looked over and smiled brightly. “Look at you,” he said softly. “Being brave and coming out from behind the mask already.”

Harry smiled in gratitude. He knew Louis was the right person for this. He knew Harry’s past and why he’d felt the need and desire to dress this way back when he was more unsure of himself and who he was becoming, but he also wasn’t afraid to tell him his actual opinions either. He was the perfect mix of everything Harry needed tonight.

“Thanks, Lou.”

Louis pulled into the parking lot and turned off the car once they found an open spot by the food court. 

“Okay.” Louis climbed out of the car and rubbed his hands together in excitement. He always had loved shopping. Harry wasn’t quite as fond, but considering his goal tonight, he kind of was. “So I’m thinking we’ll avoid the stores like A&F or Hollister and maybe start out and see what we can find at Macy’s. They’ve got a decent variety and once we have a better idea, we can try another store if you’re not feeling overwhelmed yet. Okay?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah. I’ve saved all summer for the new wardrobe, so I should have plenty to get a good start on it. I was planning on doing this a little closer to Christmas and asking for an advance in gift money, but this will do for now.”

Louis offered Harry a bright smile and linked his arm through Harry’s. “Okay, dear Harold. Let’s go find you some clothes.”

 

*~~***~~*

 

Harry plucked at the shirt he had on. It was a little snug. Actually, it was more than just a little snug, it was tight. He felt like it was showing off all of his rolls and, combined with the skinny jeans Louis had forced him into as well, the outfit had him feeling quite unsure of himself. 

“Lou, I look like a stuffed sausage,” Harry called through the door.

Harry smiled when Louis snorted in response. “Just come out and show me, please?”

Harry had been modeling outfits for Louis for over an hour, and while they’d found two that they both agreed were okay, Louis wanted to have Harry try some things that pushed his comfort zone, and these definitely did.

“God,” Harry said with a sigh. “Okay, but I’m not going out there. You have to come in here.”

Once Harry could see Louis’ checkered Vans below the door, Harry opened the door and yanked Louis inside before closing it, ensuring absolutely no one got a glimpse of him dressed like he currently was.

Harry nervously looked at the floor and bit his lip before asking, “So, it’s pretty awful, right?”

Louis stayed silent, so Harry looked up at Louis, worried he would have a look of horror on his face. 

Instead, what he saw was Louis, turning a little pink, his eyes roaming Harry’s body freely with his mouth parted.

“I think the shirt’s a bit small,” Harry said, quietly.

Louis blinked rapidly before clearing his throat and closing his mouth. “Uh, the shirt is perfect, actually, but maybe it’s a bit much when paired with those jeans.”

Harry rolled his eyes. “I told you, I look like a sausage.” 

Louis shook his head as Harry turned to face the mirror and look at himself a little more. 

“No, I mean a bit much for us common folk. I don’t think anyone would survive being around you when you look that hot, Harry.”

Harry’s head whipped around. “You think I look hot?”

The look Louis gave was a touch exasperated, but mostly looking at Harry like he was an idiot. “Harry. You cannot be serious. You’ve been hiding an amazing body beneath all those layers of loose fitting clothes. I’m literally just here to help you have confidence in it so you can win your boy, right?”

Harry shrugged. “I don’t think I’m anything special. I’m just me.”

Louis came up behind Harry and wrapped his arms around his shoulders, squeezing Harry tightly and Harry leaned into the embrace. Harry had gotten taller since the last time they stood like this, and it was more difficult since his last growth spurt, but they made it work, and it did exactly what Louis intended it to do. It helped Harry know that Louis thought he was special, even if he didn’t say the words.

“Okay. So.” Louis pulled back and observed the clothes that were in the “yes” pile as well as what Harry was wearing. “You don’t feel comfortable in this combination, and I think that’s because this is damn sexy and you aren’t ready for that yet, but I still suggest you get it. You could pair this top with the baggier jeans and these jeans would work really well for a nice button down that maybe could be a little looser for you. Let you ease into it.”

Harry nodded. “Yeah. That could work.” 

Louis smiled brightly. “Okay! So, I think these might be all we’ll find here, but we can go to a few other stores, see what you think of their styles.”

Harry let out a cackle. “Styles checking out styles,” he quipped and Louis rolled his eyes. 

“I knew you’d use a pun with your name at some point tonight.” Louis shook his head, but couldn’t hold back his smile.

“You love me,” Harry said as he pushed Louis out the door of the dressing room so he could put his old clothes back on.

“You’re lucky I do.”

 

*~~***~~*

 

Louis yawned as he put some of the bags he was holding into the trunk of the car.

“Haz, I don’t think I’m gonna last for talking about your hair and styling some of these outfits tonight. Can we get together maybe this weekend and work on that some more?”

Harry put the bags he was holding in the trunk as well before slamming it shut.

“Yeah, course,” Harry replied as he walked to the passenger seat. “Just let me know what time works for you. I’m working on Saturday morning, but should be free most of the rest of the weekend.”

“I’ve got an extra practice on Saturday afternoon and have to babysit the girls that night.” Louis furrowed his brow as he fiddled with the radio and pulled out of the parking spot. “Maybe we could do Sunday afternoon?”

A wide smile spread across Harry’s face. “Yeah, if you want to come over then you could stay for dinner because mom still makes-”

“My favorite roast and potatoes?” Louis interrupted hopefully. “Oh God, I’ve missed her roast!”

“She’s gonna actually make you eat the carrots now, you know,” Harry warned. “I know you got out of it when we were younger, but she won’t let you get away with not eating your vegetables now that we’re seniors in high school.”

Louis rolled his eyes. “I don’t even care, as long as it means that I get to eat her tasty, tender beef and perfectly seasoned roasted potatoes.”

Harry stared at Louis blankly. “You’re only doing this to get to my mom’s cooking. You missed her food more than you missed me.”

Louis’ eyes widened and he let out a loud squawk of protest. “That is so not true! Of course I missed you! I didn’t know your mom’s roast would be part of the deal of getting you back as my best friend!”

Harry felt warmth spread through his chest hearing Louis talk like that. “So I’m your best friend again?”

Louis stopped at a red light and looked over at Harry. “I think I always considered you my best friend, even when we didn’t spend time together.”

Harry gave Louis a small smile. “Me, too.”

A honk from behind them let them know the light had turned green without their notice.

“Oops,” Louis said with a light laugh, and then he got the car going again. 

The rest of the car ride was pretty quiet, but it was comfortable. 

“So, see you tomorrow?” Louis asked after he parked the car and opened the trunk for Harry. “Are you gonna wear your new clothes or wait until the makeover is complete?”

Harry looked at the huge amount of bags in his arms. “I think I’ll probably wait until I have the hair to go with it, but I might hold off on wearing my glasses unless I’m reading something.”

“Oh!” Louis said with surprise. “Did you get them out of the glove compartment?”

It was only then that Harry realized he wasn’t even wearing them. It was amazing how fast he got used to being without the thick framed glasses again.

“No, they’re still there. Can you slip them into my pocket?” 

Louis jogged around the car to reach in the passenger side and pull them out. As he walked back to Harry, Harry shifted and popped his hip to the side so Louis could easily slide them into the pocket where they would be safe until Harry got inside.

“Thanks, Lou,” Harry whispered. Louis was incredibly close to him, and he still wasn’t quite used to it again. It felt like there was an extra energy lighting up the night air, and with it, Harry’s insides. He thought he might actually be glowing, just from his proximity to his friend.

Louis blinked and suddenly took a step away. He chuckled lightly and rubbed the back of his neck, like he was embarrassed. 

“Yeah, you’re welcome, Harry. You can stop thanking me, you know. I like doing this.”

Harry smiled as he began to walk towards his own house. The bags of clothes were heavier than he would have expected. “I’m still thankful, though.”

“Have a good rest of your night, Harry.”

“You too, Lou.”

Harry tried to watch Louis make his way into his own house as long as he could without tripping over anything, but finally had to focus on where he placed his feet. It was dark, after all, and his mom had planted new bushes this past spring that he always forgot about.

Once he’d survived the trek through his yard and somehow had managed to get the front door open, Anne came around the corner with a look of shock on her face.

“Did you leave anything at the mall for everyone else?”

Harry shot her a glare before starting to heft everything upstairs. 

“Of course I did. Louis just helped me start to rework my wardrobe.”

His mom was silent at the mention of his old best friend before finally saying, “Louis? You’re hanging out with Louis again?”

“Yep,” Harry called back without adding anything else. He didn’t think he was imagining the quiet squeals of excitement coming from downstairs though. “He’s joining us for Sunday dinner, too.”

“Oh,” Anne said, obviously surprised. “Okay. I’ll be sure we have plenty of potatoes for him, then.”

“Thanks,” Harry yelled, finally able to drop the haul onto his bed. He was exhausted. Thank goodness he was able to get most of his homework done earlier. Poor Louis still had all of his to do since he’d gone shopping with Harry right after practice. 

Harry let his eyes drift over to his window, where he saw Louis starfished, face down, on his bed. The light was on and his bookbag was open, but it looked like Louis was sound asleep.

“Harry, did you have dinner with Louis?” 

Harry looked back to the bags on the bed. “Yeah, we got some Chinese at the mall.”

“Okay, babe. Don’t stay up too late, alright?”

Harry took one more look at the bags on his bed and decided they could wait to be put away until tomorrow. He pushed them over near his closet, then threw himself onto his bed and finally answered Liam’s texts asking about how the shopping had gone before also falling asleep with the light on, just like Louis had.

 

*~~***~~*

 

Harry opened the window to his room as he rubbed his eyes. He was going to kill Louis. It was far too early to be up on a Sunday.

“What is it, Lou?”

Harry opened his eyes and saw Louis sitting at his own window, his chin resting in his hand and smirk firmly in place.

“I’d forgotten what you looked like when you first wake up,” Louis mused. “Your hair goes everywhere. It’s really cute.”

Harry raised his hand and realized his hair was probably extra fluffy this morning. He’d showered last night and fallen asleep early with his hair still wet. Exciting Saturday night in the Styles household.

Wait. Had Louis said it was cute? Like, his curly hair was cute or Harry was cute? Either way, he hoped it was a good sign for winning Logan over later.

“Anyway. I was wondering if I could invite someone over to your house today.”

Harry furrowed his brows. He wasn’t sure he wanted one of Louis’ friends sitting there and critiquing everything about Harry when he was without all of his defenses and still trying to figure out how to do his hair in the new style.

“I dunno, Lou,” Harry started, but Louis waved his hands, effectively cutting Harry off.

“It’s just Lottie,” Louis said. “She’s really great with hair, Haz. I feel like she would know more about what to do with your curls than I would. I can just give advice on what I think looks good.”

Harry tilted his head. Lottie had often hung out with them when they were younger. Harry liked her quite a bit, and considering she’d already seen him far worse than he would be today, he would probably be okay with that. 

“Yeah, she can come too. I’ll let mom know to make extra veggies.”

Louis smirked. “No, she’ll still eat here. She’ll just be there for the hair consultation.”

Harry arched his brow and smiled. He was starting to feel more human the longer he talked with Louis, despite the fact it was still before noon. 

“Hair consultation?” Harry teased. “That sounds professional.”

Louis threw a sock he grabbed off the floor toward Harry, but it came nowhere near Harry’s window and fell to the grass between their houses. 

“You’re gonna have to get that, you know,” Harry said seriously. He couldn’t hold back his smile, though. Louis hadn’t changed through the years at all.

“I know.” Louis shrugged before sticking his head out the window a little further to observe it. “It’s a sock I haven’t been able to find the match to in forever anyway. I think the sock monster got it.”

Harry laughed. “Of all the socks in your house, the sock monster always came after yours.”

Louis’ eyes widened and he held his hands out. “Right? Thank you. God, it’s so annoying.”

They both started to laugh, but Harry’s stomach grumbled drawing his attention to the fact that he actually was very hungry.

“Lou, I’m gonna go eat. I’ll see you later though.”

“Okay,” Louis said as he drew himself back inside. “I’ll be over with Lottie in a little bit.”

They waved goodbye to each other and Harry scratched at his chest before looking down. He was even still wearing the old t-shirt and basketball shorts he’d worn all day yesterday. He’d fallen asleep so early that he hadn’t stripped down to his underwear like he usually did.

It was for the best, apparently. Louis didn’t need to be blinded with Harry’s pale, bare chest. 

Harry made his way to have breakfast before getting ready for the last of his makeover with Louis and Lottie.

 

*~~***~~*

 

“Louis! Lottie! It’s so good to see you two around here again,” Anne greeted as she opened the door. 

Harry rolled his eyes. She was so embarrassing. It wasn’t like she never saw them. They lived next door, for God’s sake.

“Good to see you too, Mom,” Louis greeted, going in for a tight hug. 

Hearing Louis call Harry’s mom Mom made his heart flutter. Strange. He’d called her that since they were little. It made sense that he would continue. Why did Harry’s chest feel so strange?

“Come on in. Harry’s waiting for you.”

Harry waved from where he’d been standing on the stairs. “Yeah, right here, Mom.”

“Oh! Yes. There you are.” Anne looked at all of them with a wide smile, and was she tearing up over this? She was maybe a little too invested in this supposed reunion. She put her hand to her chest before clearing her throat and saying, “Okay, well you three have fun. And know that you two can come over whenever you want.”

“Thanks, Anne,” Lottie said. 

It was then that Harry finally realized that she was carrying two rather large canvas bags and what might be a caboodle. Did they even still make caboodles? Harry had always wanted one in the nineties, but he’d been forced to play with Gemma’s old, broken ones. Lottie’s looked newer and much nicer, but it probably did about the same thing.

Harry smiled before nodding upstairs and leading the way to his bedroom. 

“I figured we could just do it here, unless you wanna do it in the bathroom?” Harry asked Lottie.

“Nah, here’s fine,” she said as she set all her things on his bed and pulled his desk chair to the middle of the room. “Sit here. I want to see what type of hair you have and ask a few questions before I start recommending product and trying possible styles.”

Harry widened his eyes and looked at Louis. She was acting like a specialist, but she was only thirteen. She wasn’t even in high school yet. Louis just shrugged and sat down on the desk.

“There’s a reason I brought her,” he whispered. “She’s great. She’s been cutting my hair for a couple years now.”

Harry turned to Louis. “Really?” Harry turned to Lottie. “Do you think I’ll need a haircut?”

She stopped pulling out and organizing her bottles and tubs of product as well as the various tools like blowdryers and curling irons to look at his hair. 

“Not today. I think it’s a good length, though if you want to do something with a bit more structure to it, then you might need a trim.”

Harry nodded. That sounded good.

Soon enough, Lottie had her hands in his hair as she pulled at it and rubbed his scalp.

“You seem to have pretty fine hair, overall. Is it pretty greasy? Or do you mostly wash it every day because of the product you use in it?”

Harry furrowed his brows. How did she know he showered everyday? 

“Uh, mostly because of the product,” Harry admitted. “I don’t think it’s too greasy?”

Lottie nodded before going back to her bags and immediately putting some of the tubs and bottles back into one of her canvas bags.

“I’m going to start us with some mousse and light wax, just to add some texture and definition to the curls as an attempt to battle the frizz that humidity creates.”

Harry nodded, pretending like he knew what she was talking about. He figured he would by the time she was done.

“First, I’m going to moisten your hair. Mousse works better when it’s slightly damp, as does the wax.”

Lottie slowly instructed him on how to use the products as she worked her hands through his hair. After a few minutes of placing the hair a certain way, she had Louis join her to look at Harry.

“What do you think?”

Louis nodded. “Yeah, looks good. It looks a little uneven, though. Like it’s more poofy on one side or something?”

Harry felt his hair, and he didn’t like it. “Does it soften at all? The curls feel, like, stiff or something.”

Lottie smiled. “Not really. I mean, this particular mousse can, but it loses it’s holding power if you soften the curls. The wax also remains that texture, which is part of the appeal.”

Harry squished his nose up and she giggled.

“I thought you’d be okay with it, considering how much gel you usually use. Do you not like it?”

Harry shook his head. “Part of what I wanted with my curls was the ability to like, run my hands through it if I wanted. You know? Actually feel my hair. Not product.”

Lottie nodded. “Do you mind washing this out really fast? Then come back in here with it wet and I can show you another option or two.”

Harry nodded and got up from the chair. “Yeah. I’ll be right back.”

Harry stripped down and had to shampoo his hair twice to get the wax out that Lottie had put in. That definitely wasn’t a product he wanted to deal with.

Once his hair felt normal again, he climbed out, dried off, and got dressed again before grabbing his leave in conditioner and heading back to his bedroom.

“Is this okay for me to still use?” Harry asked as he looked at the label. He wasn’t sure what he was actually looking for since he knew next to nothing about hair care, but whatever. He held it out to Lottie who left Louis’ side to take a look. “I tried it once ‘cause Gemma used it and I liked it enough that I kept going with it.”

“Yeah, this should be perfect for your hair type, actually. Not too heavy, but should still help moisturize the curls. Let me show you a few other options too.”

Harry followed Lottie to the bed and pretended to understand and care what she was talking about as she went over every product she thought could possibly work for him, but most of the time he was just making faces at Louis over her shoulder.

“Harry, do you even care? You’ve not responded to anything I’ve said for awhile now.”

Harry’s eyes widened and he looked away from Louis, embarrassed to have been caught out. “Sorry, this is just a bit over my head. I guess just...I’m pretty low key, so something easy that will still help my hair look nice?”

Lottie rolled her eyes in a way that made Harry think she had learned it from watching Louis. “Do you want me to even try showing you how to use a diffuser on your blow dryer or are you going to just let it air dry every day?”

Harry pursed his lips. “Is it bad if I say air dry?”

Lottie smiled. “No. Not at all.”

“Okay, then definitely that option.”

Lottie sat Harry down in the chair again and dragged out three small bottles, one of which was his conditioner. She walked him through how much of the hair oil, the leave in conditioner, and the sea salt spray he should use, what application style would be best for his hair, and then what he needed to do to ensure it dried how he wanted.

Once she was done, she showed him his reflection in the mirror and he was incredibly impressed.

“My hair looks even more curly than it usually does. How did you do that?”

Lottie smiled. “That’s how good product works. It just kind of helps your hair do what it already does on it’s own so it looks better.” She squished up her nose and rubbed her ear. “Do you like it? Does it feel okay?”

Harry touched his curls and they felt like they always did, but just looked a thousand times better. They always took ages to dry after a shower, but somehow the product Lottie had used had the curls acting dry already, which was a miracle. 

“I think it’s great, but we’ll see if it lasts through dinner. If it does, then yeah. This is perfect, Lottie.”

She smiled proudly before her cell phone chirped and she pulled it out of her pocket. “Okay, well Maddie is already at our house to pick me up so I’ve gotta go. You keep those bottles to try for yourself tomorrow and let me know what you think, okay?”

She threw the rest of her serums and tools into the bags and caboodle before running out of Harry’s room, leaving Louis and Harry alone.

“So what do you think?” Harry asked, nervously touching his hair again. 

He scrunched it like Lottie had shown before shaking his head around and swiping the hair across his forehead. He wasn’t going to be able to have it hanging in his eyes just yet. That was too much of a change. Maybe if he brushed it to the side it would be alright though.

Louis stayed quiet, so Harry turned to look at him. He had a strange look on his face, one Harry had never seen before. It was like his facial muscles had gone slack, but his eyes were studying Harry intently. He had no idea what it meant, but he hoped it was good.

“Uh,” Louis said, his voice squeaking a little bit. He cleared it before smiling at Harry. “Yeah, I think it looks great. You gonna model the outfit you think you wanna wear tomorrow?”

Harry pursed his lips. “Nah, I think I want to see if this hairdo lasts through dinner first. I’ll put the clothes together with the hair tomorrow for school if it lasts without going frizzy.”

Louis nodded before he ran and jumped onto Harry’s bed, landing face down. Harry laughed. Louis was so random sometimes.

Harry moved the chair he’d been sitting in back to his desk as Louis mumbled something into Harry’s pillow that he couldn’t quite make out.

“Sorry, what?”

Louis turned his face to the side and asked, “So, you gonna talk to Logan tomorrow if your hair works out?”

Harry’s eyes widened. “Oh, uhhhh, no. Probably not. I think I need to get used to being in those clothes and my new hairdo and everything first so I feel confident in them.”

Louis made a sound of assent, but kept his eyes closed. 

“Besides,” Harry said, nervously. “I don’t really know how to talk to a boy I like.”

Harry couldn’t believe he’d actually said it. Sure, it was Louis and Louis had never made fun of him for his apprehensions or fears before, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t start now. He was talking about flirting with Logan. Aren’t people supposed to be naturally good at flirting? And yet Harry didn’t have a clue where to start.

“Oh, Harry,” Louis said with a fond smile. His eyes were still closed, but Harry swore he could feel Louis watching him anyway. “One step at a time. Let’s see how you feel after a day at school after your makeover and then we can start working on your flirting. Okay?”

“You’ll help me with that too?” Harry asked.

“Of course,” Louis said before sitting up and finally opening his eyes again. “What are best friends for?”

 

*~~***~~*

 

Harry walked into school and made his way towards his locker. He felt like his hair looked pretty good, even if it wasn’t as perfect as when Lottie had done it the day before, and he felt pretty good about the outfit he’d chosen for the day. He was a little confused about all the looks people kept giving him in the hallway, though.

He hurried over to his locker and opened it so he could hide inside it a little as he sorted out his books and folders for the first few periods.

“Heya, Harold,” Louis said happily, coming up beside Harry. Louis leaned in and stage whispered, “Don’t look now, but you’ve caught the attention of pretty much the entire school this morning.”

Harry tried crouching down into himself as he continued switching things out of his bookbag and zipping it up. “I know. Why is everyone looking at me like that?”

Louis let out a laugh, causing Harry to look at him, practically begging with his eyes for understanding. 

“Oh, you’re serious,” Louis said, obviously surprised. He cleared his throat and shuffled his weight around a little before saying, “I mean, you’re hot, H. You always were, but now it’s like you’ve leveled up or something.”

Harry’s eyebrows furrowed. “What? No I’m not. I’m perfectly average.”

Louis shrugged his shoulders. “Believe it or not, you really,  _ really _ are incredibly hot.”

Harry had no idea how to process that information. He was hot? There was no way. Hot was a descriptor used for people like Logan or Louis or Zayn. Definitely  _ not _ someone like Harry.

“Oh my God, Harry?”

Harry closed his locker as he pulled his bookbag back onto his shoulders and he turned to look at Liam, whose mouth was hanging wide open as he looked Harry up and down.

“It’s you,” Liam said, before shaking his head and starting to ramble like he always did when he was thrown off. “I mean, of course it is, but like, you said makeover and I knew you were going to, but I didn’t actually expect you to like, look this different? I just, I can’t really...wow.”

Louis walked the few steps over to Liam and patted him on the shoulder. “I know, right? Our Harry is all grown up and showing everyone how hot he is.”

Liam nodded his head fervently. “I mean, not that I think you’re hot, but you kinda are? I’m really confused right now.”

Harry was sure his entire face, neck, chest, and arms were bright red, based on how warm he felt from the attention he had garnered from not only people he kind of was familiar with in the halls, but two of his best friends.

“It’s not that big of a deal, guys,” he said, looking over his shoulder and seeing that it was almost time for the second bell to ring.

“It really is, actually,” Liam said, dazed look still in place. “But I’ve gotta get to class, so yeah. Have fun, be safe, and oh my God.”

Harry heard Louis cackle behind him as Harry shuffled off to class. Today was going to be interesting.

 

*~~***~~*

 

Harry slammed his bagged lunch onto the table and threw himself at Louis, fake sobbing onto his shoulder.

Okay, he really didn’t, but he wanted to. Instead he just dropped it onto the table and dropped into the chair before leaning his forehead onto Louis’ shoulder. It was close enough.

“Why won’t people stop staring at me and asking me weird questions?” Harry mumbled into Louis’ sleeve. 

Louis, for his part, just patted Harry on the head and continued eating. “They’re just amazed at how pretty you are and the fact they overlooked it for so long. Apparently not everyone is as smart as me. I knew all along.”

“He really did,” Bebe said from Louis’ other side. Harry giggled a little when Louis reached over and grabbed her chocolate milk and began to chug it. “Louis! You’re so mean!” she cried as she swatted at his shoulder. “God, I hate boys. I need new friends.”

“What kinds of weird questions are people asking?” Niall asked before popping a tater tot into his mouth. Apparently the cafeteria was serving breakfast for lunch.

“Like why I got a perm or if I just transferred to the school and stuff. Mr. Griebel actually asked me if I was the German foreign exchange student.”

Niall and Steve both snorted when Harry mentioned the greatly disliked chemistry teacher, but Liam’s mouth dropped. 

“No he didn’t,” Liam said, breathless. “He didn’t realize you were the same person?”

“No. He almost sent me to the principal’s office because he thought i was actually lying to him about it. It was ridiculous.”

Louis wrapped his arm around Harry’s shoulders and pulled him in for a side hug. “It’s okay, sweetcheeks. We know you’re the same nerdy kid that you always were underneath all of this.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Harry pushed Louis away from him and looked up with a big smile on his face to find Logan watching the two of them intently. Harry immediately looked away and down at his lunch. He should probably get to eating so he could finish before his next class. 

Once Harry had unwrapped his sandwich and pulled out his bag of carrots, he still felt like he could feel someone watching him. He didn’t want to look up and risk making eye contact with him again, so he instead nudged Louis and kept staring at his food.

“Hey, Lou,” he whispered, just loud enough so Louis could hear him. “Is Logan still looking over here?”

Louis had leaned into Harry a little to hear him better, but eventually looked at Bebe with a smile, and Harry could tell he was looking for Logan. After a few seconds that felt like hours to Harry, Louis leaned over and wrapped his arm around Harry. He leaned in, closer than necessary, and whispered right into Harry’s ear, “Oh yeah. He’s definitely watching and I think is getting a little jealous of me. Want me to keep going like this?”

Harry turned, eyes wide, and almost hit Louis’ nose with his own, they were that close. “What? Why would we do that? There’s no way someone as cool as you would date me, Lou. He’s probably just confused, right?”

Louis groaned and put his head on Harry’s shoulder. “Hazza. You look amazing and you  _ are _ amazing.” Louis pulled back and made Harry turn to him, his hands on both of Harry’s shoulders. “You seriously need to have confidence in yourself. I thought you did? You always seemed to before, so what‘s different now?”

Harry shrugged. “I dunno. I guess I feel like people can see more of me now and that makes me nervous or something.”

Louis was obviously exasperated, and Harry had no idea how to fix it. “Babe. Seriously. You’re the coolest kid in this school simply because you’re so original. Of course I would date someone like you. Hell, I would date you period. But you’ve got your sights on him, so let’s see what we can do to get him to come after you, okay?”

Harry’s jaw dropped.

“Did Louis just say he’d date Harry?” Liam asked, loud enough so the entire table could hear. Harry’s eyes didn’t leave Louis’ face, but he did see at least three heads nodding affirmation.

Louis, meanwhile, seemed to slowly realize what he had just admitted and what that could mean.

“I uhhh…” Louis squinted his eyes shut and hung his head. He pulled his hands away from Harry’s shoulders so he could flick his fringe nervously and mess with his shirt, but Harry missed their weight and warmth immediately. “I mean. Yeah. I’ve kinda been into you for...ever, really. I figured it would never happen cause you just weren’t into me.”

“Louis. He literally did all of this to get the attention of your not as hot twin,” Bebe said. “Why won’t you listen to me? God. New friends. Today. I’m serious.”

Niall let out his bleating laugh that always made everyone else need to laugh with him, and that broke the tension at the table.

“You’ve liked me, like wanted to date me, for awhile?” Harry asked quietly, as the rest of the table bickered and Zayn just threw random pieces of food at everyone.

Louis bit his lip and stared at his food before nodding. “Like, since I realized I was into guys. You were kind of the reason I had that revelation.”

“Me?” Harry asked in surprise. “How is that even possible. I was wearing baggy grampa clothes and playing the cello.”

“Oh my God, Harry.” Louis covered his face with his hands at the fact he was still having this conversation. Harry almost felt bad, but he kind of felt like his brain was melting with information overload. “How long will it take before you realize that what you wear doesn’t matter? You’re still you and that is what’s hot.”

Finally, Harry paused for a second and felt more than numbness and surprise. In fact, now that he actually took stock of himself, he realized he felt quite happy. His arms were a little tingly with excitement, and his tummy felt like it might fly away with the amount of butterflies that were taking flight within. It was the best he’d ever felt, all because  _ Louis _ wanted to date Harry. He even thought Harry was hot before the makeover.

Harry tilted his head and pursed his lips in consideration. “Does this mean I don’t have to learn how to flirt after all?”

Louis’ eyebrows furrowed. “Huh? Why wouldn’t you? You haven’t won your man over yet.”

Harry reached over and wove his fingers between Louis’, the exact same way they used to as kids. Their hands still fit perfectly.

“Maybe the one I thought I wanted pales in comparison to what’s right in front of me.”

Louis arched an eyebrow. “I’m not exactly complaining, but I don’t want you settling just because you found out I’m interested. Don’t go throwing around those movie lines you know I love if you don’t mean them.”

The bell rang, and the cafeteria turned to chaos. Harry still hadn’t taken a bite of his lunch, but he also couldn’t care less at the moment. His best friend was holding his hand after confessing he wanted to date him. It was like he was living in a movie, so of course he was throwing around movie lines.

“Why don’t you ask me on a date and we can give it a try?” Harry suggested. “See if I mean what I say or if I wanna take them back and save them for someone else.”

Louis pulled his hand back and swatted at Harry’s shoulder. “I take back everything I’ve ever said about you. You are a smooth talker and a charmer and you need zero help from me at all. You’re gonna kill me, Styles.”

Harry smiled as wide as he could so his dimples popped. Louis always had liked his dimples.

“You gonna walk me to class, Tomlinson?”

Louis opened his mouth and turned to speak to his friends and get some back-up support, Harry realized they were the only two left at their table. 

“Well. It seems I am because no one else is here to do it and I can’t chance you getting into danger and not making it safely.”

Harry fluttered his eyelashes as he packed his lunch back up. “My hero.”

Louis leaned over and kissed Harry’s cheek. “I’ll try my best.”

The butterflies that were just calming down again picked up to full speed, but Harry didn’t mind. They could take up full residence there if it meant he’d get a kiss from Louis on a regular basis.

 

*~~***~~*

 

Louis walked into their bedroom and stopped in his tracks.

“Harry. What are you doing?”

Harry turned to Louis, before looking back into the mirror and smoothing out his thickly gelled hair and adjusting his glasses.

“I’m finishing my costume. Whatcha think?”

Louis blinked at his boyfriend. “I mean, you look great, as always. Did you actually buy new clothes for this or do you somehow still fit what you wore in high school?”

“New khakis, yeah.” Harry looked down at his outfit and ran his hand down his torso. “And I got the shirt from the thrift store, but the sweater vest and bow tie were one of my favorites from high school.”

“I think I remember it, actually.” Louis walked up to Harry and wrapped his arms around his waist.  “Is it fair to go as an old version of yourself for your costume?”

Harry shrugged and gave Louis a smile. “You’re essentially doing the same thing, even if you are wearing another man’s name on the soccer uniform.”

Louis smiled and leaned into Harry. He tucked his face into Harry’s neck and took in his smell. The shirt still had the scent of the thrift store a little bit, but otherwise, Harry smelled just how he always did and Louis loved it.

“So,” Harry rumbled. Louis loved how he could feel it all through his chest since he was up so close. “Should we get going to Liam and Zayn’s? You know how they were threatening us about being late.”

“Those fuckers,” Louis whined as he pulled back. “They’re always late to everything, but if we’re late to their first party they throw as a married couple, then we lose rights as godparents. It’s not even fair.”

Harry laughed and tossed Louis’ vintage soccer jacket at him. “Come on, Beckham. Let’s get to the party already.”

“I still wish you’d dressed up like Victoria. That would have been the best couple’s costume ever.”

Harry leaned down and pecked Louis on his pouting lips. “Maybe we can do something like that next year.”

Louis sighed. “Fine.”

“Love you!” Harry sang as he sauntered out of their room towards the front door.

“Yeah,” Louis yelled back before he whispered to himself, “Love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave a kind comment and/or kudos if you enjoyed :D I'll also truly love you if you help by reblogging the fic post found [here](http://lululawrence.tumblr.com/post/168258822293/a-real-work-of-art-by-lululawrence-i-dont).
> 
> Interested in helping support charities with fanfic? If you are, I could write a fic for you! Check out the info [here on Tumblr](https://1dfanworksforcharity.tumblr.com/post/174494969280/1d-fanworks-for-charity-auctions-for-lululawrence).


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